Envoy warns world of ‘Cold War’ risk

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29 March, 2018, 12:00 am

SYDNEY – Russia’s Ambassador to Australia said on Wednesday the world will enter into a “Cold War situation” should the West continue its bias against Moscow in response to the nerve agent attack against a former Soviet spy in Britain.

“The West must understand that the anti-Russian campaign has no future,” Russian Ambassador Grigory Logvinov told reporters in Canberra.

“If it continues, we will be deeply in a Cold War situation.”

Russia denies any part in the March 4 nerve agent attack on former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter in England.

The United States and governments across Europe are expelling Russian diplomats en masse in response.

Australia said on Tuesday it would expel two Russian diplomats, prompting Mr Logvinov’s impromptu address to the media on Wednesday morning.

Mr Logvinov rejected claims that Moscow was behind the attack and said Russia has yet to decide on its response to the diplomatic action by British allies.

“I said we have no evidence. The British stubbornly denied giving any evidence. They have denied following the provisions and protocol of the Convention on Prohibition of Chemical Weapons,” he said.